Editing Ulaire Cantea, Black Assassin (12R174)

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{{CardTabs|Ringwraith}}

[[{{ROOTPAGENAME}}]] is a {{C|Ringwraith}} [[Minion]] from the [[Black Rider]] set.
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= Strategy =
'''Úlairë Cantëa, Black Assassin''' dares to ask the question: what if {{Card|Ulaire Enquea, Lieutenant of Morgul}} and {{Card|Ulaire Toldea, Messenger of Morgul}} were the same card? It turns out that the answer is: it'd be a pretty damn good card. Black Assassin fills the same role as those two classic cards, harshly punishing opponents when they don't respect the [[rule of 6]] or let [[burden]]s stack up too high. Many opponents will end up letting burdens stack up, between the ubiquity of {{Card|The One Ring, The Great Ring}} and the fact that {{Card|Sam, Son of Hamfast}} is on the [[X-list]] in [[Standard]] and [[Expanded]].

Black Assassin is, technically, a bit weaker than either of his predecessors. Unless your opponent is playing {{Card|Isildur, Sword-Bearer}}, you'll probably need at least five burdens before you can use his '''[[Assignment Phase|Assignment:]]''' ability, and without those burdens, you won't get to choose who he kills. But he's cheaper, more efficient relative to his cost when you're not punishing your opponent's misplay, and just more versatile overall, which makes him a safer inclusion in {{C|Wraith}} decks. In other decks, his spotting requirement probably makes him not worth the effort; 10 strength isn't ''that'' much, and most post-[[Shadows]] Shadow [[culture]]s have their own rule of six cards they'd rather use.

You can just play him the same way as Shotgun Enquea in any {{C|Wraith}} deck. Hold him back to kill a character or two if you think your opponent is likely to go over the six-companion threshold, or just play him as a slightly overpriced regular minion if not. You probably won't get to pick and choose your targets unless your opponent has been overusing {{Card|The One Ring, The Great Ring}}, but that's fine. He'll probably attract a lot of negative attention if he's likely to kill anyone, but hopefully that's buying you breathing room for other minions. Most decks in [[Standard]] and [[Expanded]] should have a plan to pick off a troublesome minion before the [[skirmish phase]], or at least shut his abilities off with something like {{Card|Perspective}} or {{Card|Stewards' Legacy}}. It's just a matter of playing more threats than they have answers, and this is a fairly efficient threat. He's not quite as reliable as {{Card|Ulaire Enquea, Sixth of the Nine Riders}} since he can be killed before the skirmish phase without accomplishing much, but he is more devastating when he does get through.

In a dedicated [[corruption]] deck, he goes from just another threat to a downright menace. You can pick and choose who you want to skirmish, at least once you've gotten some burdens stacked up. He's not quite as good at it as {{Card|Ulaire Nertea, Dark Horseman}}, but you can use both. Evasive minions like these mean you can trigger all of the copies of {{Card|Sense of Obligation}} you want, twice a turn (as long as he survives the first skirmish of course). It also means you can sneak {{C|Wraith}} [[condition]]s onto almost any character. That can mean dropping {{Card|Sauron's Gaze}} on a support character, or setting up {{Card|Lingering Shadow}} for a {{Card|Dark Fell About Him}} / {{Card|Gates of the Dark City}} "auto-corruption" [[combo]].

The only other significant version of Úlairë Cantëa is {{Card|Ulaire Cantea, Faster than Winds}}. If all you need is a card to guarantee a trickle of [[threat]]s, {{Card|Ulaire Lemenya, Eternally Threatening}} is preferable. But a threat-focused deck like [[Threatguls]] may prefer to run a full four copies of Faster Than Winds over this card, and get rule of six protection from cards like Shotgun Enquea, Sixth of the Nine Riders, and/or {{Card|Unending Life}} instead.

= Strengths and Weaknesses =
== Synergizes With... ==

* As a situational [[hate]] card, he really appreciates cards that can pull him from your deck or discard pile, like {{Card|Morgul Squealer}}, {{Card|Out of Sight and Shot}}, {{Card|The Witch-King, Morgul King}}, {{Card|Ring of Terror}}, {{Card|Evil-smelling Fens}}, or possibly {{Card|Sudden Strike}}.
* Once some [[burden]]s are stacked up, he trigger all of the copies of {{Card|Sense of Obligation}} you happen to have in play.
* Alternately, he can put other {{C|Wraith}} [[condition]]s like {{Card|Sauron's Gaze}} or {{Card|Lingering Shadow}} on a character of your choice. (Sense of Obligation doesn't play nicely with other {{CI|Wraith}} conditions, though.)

== Strong Versus... ==

* {{Card|The One Ring, The Great Ring}}. "Paper" ring is a shot in the arm to all sorts of [[corruption]] and [[burden]]-[[spot]]ting cards.
* Large Fellowships, especially ones that plan to win skirmishes in the [[skirmish phase]] rather than simply killing or discarding minions before they even get there.

== Weak Versus... ==

* [[Direct wounding]] and abilities that discard minions, as long as they happen before the skirmish phase. If your opponent is breaking the [[rule of 6]], they're going to want to pick him off if they can, be it with {{Card|Terrible and Evil}}, {{Card|Gandalf, Powerful Guide}} and {{Card|Radagast's Herb Bag}}, {{Card|Shadowplay}} and {{Card|Unheeded}}, {{Card|Take Up the Bow}}, {{Card|Aragorn's Bow, Ranger's Longbow}}, {{Card|Ithilien Blade}}, or many others.
* [[Skirmish Cancellation|Skirmish cancellation]]. Cards like {{Card|Gandalf's Staff}}, {{Card|No Visitors}}, or {{Card|Halfling Leaf}} work before he even gets a chance to use his ability.
* Cards that prevent activated minion abilities. {{Card|Stewards' Legacy}} and {{Card|Perspective}} all prevent him from doing anything at all. Cards that only prevent skirmish actions, like {{Card|Faramir, Son of Denethor}}, {{Card|Crashing Cavalry}}, and <!--Cavern Entrance-->{{Card|11S232}}, prevent him from automatically killing characters, but he can still use his '''Assignment:''' ability if you can spot a low-[[resistance]] [[companion]].

= Rulings =
Black Assassin's '''Skirmish:''' ability doesn't care about the opposing character's [[Vitality]]. It doesn't deal [[wound]]s; it just kills the character. Cards that prevent or disallow wounds cannot protect against it. This includes cards like {{Card|Armor}}, {{Card|Consorting with Wizards}}, {{Card|Gimli's Helm}}, and {{Card|Faramir, Wizard's Pupil}}.

= Alternate Personas =
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